Bridging the Worlds
by Zathara001
Summary: When Kara is stranded between worlds, there's one place she knows she'll find refuge...
1. Chapter 1

CONTINUITY NOTE: Because the events of Arrow 5x09 are so abrupt, so impactful, for this series of stories (which are AU already, of course), they never happened. Detective Malone is still alive and with Felicity, Dig is still in hiding, and Laurel is still dead.

This takes place after "Ringing in the New Year."

As always, if anyone who owns Arrow, Supergirl, et al., wants any of this, it's hereby given to them with thanks.

# # # # #

Kara tumbled through space, too dazed from the fight with Mr. Mxyzptlk to right herself just yet. As she recovered, she realized that she wasn't tumbling through _space_ , exactly. Instead, it was…

It was the not-space between worlds that she'd traversed several times to visit what Cisco had called Earth-1. Her own Earth, he'd told her, was Earth-38.

"Why does your Earth get to be Earth-1?" she'd asked.

"When you discover other parallel worlds, you get to name them." He'd grinned at her, and she'd had to laugh.

Now it was no laughing matter. She had to get back to her Earth, had to stop the crazy imp whose tricks too often turned deadly - but how?

Kara focused on orienting herself - somehow. This weird space had no obvious _up_ or _down_ , but she straightened until her positioning felt _right_. Even if it wasn't technically, objectively right, it was right enough for her, and in this formless place, that was really all she had to judge by.

She scanned the … area? place? She didn't know the best word, but she pivoted slowly, using all her different types of vision to search for an exit, some way out of this inter-dimensional limbo.

She made two complete circuits before giving up. She couldn't see any way out of here -

But that didn't mean there wasn't one. Something Oliver had said when he trained Guardian came back to her.

"He relies too much on his sight," Oliver had said, "on trying to _see_ things and people. Sometimes, that's a liability. You've got to be able to use, and trust, all your senses."

So Kara closed her eyes and tried to relax, to open the rest of her senses to whatever this place might show her.

There was no way to judge how much time passed before something niggled at her awareness.

Still keeping her eyes closed, Kara willed herself to move toward that tiny hiccup in the formless nothing between worlds.

She could only hope it would take her home.

\- S -

Since his brother's death, Cisco Ramon had buried himself in work. First it had been to distract himself from his grief. Then it had been to process his anger at Barry Allen for causing Dante's death. Now, having experienced firsthand how easy it was to change the future, however inadvertently, Cisco worked as atonement, indirect as it was, for his treatment of Barry.

Today, he updated the database he'd started of the other worlds they'd encountered, just to see what he might learn. Were they all at similar tech levels? What assistance - or conversely, what threat - might each of them provide? And, very privately, Cisco wondered which of them might provide the best vacations.

The first few Earths were easy: Earth-1 - or, as one of the alternate Harrison Wellses had called it, Terra Prime - his own Earth. Earth-2, where Hunter Zoloman had killed Jay Garrick and become the evil Zoom, where Harry Wells lived and his daughter was the heroine Jesse Quick. Earth-3, home of the Jay Garrick who looked like Henry Allen, Barry's father. And, of course, Earth-38, where Barry had met Kara Danvers, also called Supergirl.

The Earths between Earth-3 and Earth-38 were his focus today. Cisco started with the Earths they'd encountered while searching for a new Wells to help their team. Earth-16, where they'd seen a drunken Wells wearing clothes reminiscent of the Old West. Earth-17, where Wells had spoken with an almost-English accent and worn steampunk-style accessories. Earth-18, where they'd seen a Wells in mime-like makeup speaking with a French accent. Finally, Earth-19, where H.R. had come from.

Cisco slipped on his Vibe gear and was just about to vibe Earth-16 when a reddish blur streaked past him, lifting his hair away from his neck.

"What's up, Barry?" he asked without turning. "I thought you were having dinner with Iris? Or, wait - is that Wally? Still getting used to you having the speed, man."

A feminine voice answered. "No, I'm not Wally. And Barry is having dinner with Iris."

Cisco yanked his glasses off as he spun his chair to face the intruder. He relaxed when he recognized her.

"…which is why I came to see you," Kara - Supergirl - finished.

"Kara!" Cisco stood. "What's going on? Don't tell me the Dominators are invading your Earth?"

"No," she said. "I got thrown between worlds, and I don't have the extrapolator with me, so I need help to get back home."

"Who or what could throw you - _you_ \- between worlds?" Cisco demanded.

"He calls himself Mxyzptlk," Kara said, "and he's like a trickster god, but his tricks are deadly. I have to get back to try to stop him, somehow."

Cisco slid his glasses onto his face. "No problem."

He focused on the vibrations that marked Earth-38, and channeled his power through his gauntlets - then frowned when nothing happened.

"Where's the tunnel?" Kara asked. "There's supposed to be an Earth-spanning tunnel."

"Not the time for Looney Tunes references," Cisco muttered. "Though that was a good one. Something's … different."

But what that _something_ might be eluded him. Cisco adjusted his glasses and tried again. A second adjustment and a third attempt were equally ineffective.

"Okay," Cisco said slowly. "Problem. It's not working."

"Why not?" Kara demanded.

"I don't know." And that was the worst part of it - to know that his powers could be affected by some being in a parallel universe, and he'd never realize it. But - just how much of his powers had been affected?

A couple of experiments made him frown.

"I can still open portals on this Earth, and I can still vibe objects. It's just crossing between dimensions that I can't do - not just your Earth, either," he told Kara. "I tried vibing Earth-2, Earth-3, and Earth-19. No luck."

"So I'm stuck here." Kara sounded resigned.

"Don't jump to conclusions just yet," Cisco told her. "It could be temporary, related to whatever this Mix-Up guy did."

"Mxyzptlk."

"Yeah, whatever." Cisco brushed that aside. "We'll try again tomorrow."

"Thanks, Cisco," Kara told him as he turned to remove his gear. "Just one question."

"What's that?"

"Where can I stay tonight?"

\- S -

"Did you even sleep last night?" Thea's voice made Oliver Queen look up from where he sprawled on the sofa by the fireplace.

"Off and on," Oliver replied as she crossed to open the shades and let the mid-morning light into the loft.

"So what did you spend all night doing, if not sleeping, or going out as Green Arrow?" Thea climbed over the back of the sofa and perched on it. Oliver shifted his feet to give her more room.

"I've been thinking about a plan to let people found guilty of misdemeanors work off their fines," Oliver said. "Instead of paying a hundred dollars, say, they can spend five hours picking up litter or painting over graffiti."

"Don't they already use prisoners for that?" Thea asked.

"They do," Oliver agreed. "I just want to expand the program."

"Litter and graffiti are surface problems. Symptoms, maybe, but not the disease."

"If we can treat some of the symptoms, maybe the patient will heal a little more quickly."

"It's optimistic," Thea said. "Do you think the city council will go for it, given how strapped for cash the city is?"

Oliver reached over to the coffee table, pulled a manila folder from a scattering of papers and files, and offered it to his sister. "Take a look."

"What am I looking at?"

"For all the fines issued, the city only collects about sixty-five cents on the dollar," Oliver explained. "And we spend a lot more than that just trying to collect, so we lose even more. These aren't hardened criminals, either - they're people who get a speeding ticket or some other minor thing. We should give them a chance…. What?"

Thea stopped trying not to grin. "Just - listen to you. All those years of _you have failed this city_ , and now you're arguing exactly the opposite."

"It's a matter of degree, Speedy," Oliver began, but was interrupted by a knock on the - balcony door?

His hand was already sliding to the knife concealed beneath the sofa cushions by the time he glanced up. He relaxed when he recognized the red-and-blue clad figure standing there.

"Kara?" Thea asked, swinging her legs over the back of the sofa and going to open the door.

"Sorry to drop in like this," Kara said as she stepped inside to hug Thea.

"Not a problem." Oliver rose and hugged Kara in turn, telling himself that his pulse was still elevated due to his surprise at her arrival, not her nearness. "Something happen on your Earth?"

"Not the way you're thinking," Kara replied. "The short version is, a villain on my Earth managed to send me here, and Cisco can't get me back."

Oliver heard the slightest tremor in her tone. He could only meet her gaze and say, "I can't imagine what it's like to lose your world once, let alone twice."

"We're not giving up," Kara said, determination fierce in her tone. "Cisco will keep trying. But at least I'm in a place where there's someone who _can_ and _will_ try, and where I have friends."

"More or less," Oliver murmured, and while Thea shot him a dark look, Kara gave a more genuine smile.

"More or less," she agreed. Then, "I need a favor."

"Anything," Thea promised, and Oliver frowned just slightly as he said, "What favor?"

Kara took a breath, let it out slowly, and met his gaze. "We don't know how long I'll be here, and if I'm going to be here a while, I'll have to make a life on this Earth. I'll need an identity. Some of the things you told me made me think you can help with that."

Oliver nodded. "I know some people."

"Great," Thea said. "While you do that, we're going shopping."

"Shopping?" Kara repeated.

"Shopping," Thea confirmed. "Friends don't let friends wear the same uniform every day. You need clothes, too, for your identity."

"Caitlin Snow loaned me some," Kara said. "And I couldn't impose -"

"Who doesn't love shopping?" Thea demanded. Oliver cleared his throat and smiled when Thea glared at him. "Besides you. Come on," she added to Kara. "It's going to be fun."

"But -" Kara began.

"Don't," Oliver advised her. "Thea's a force of nature, sometimes. This is one of those times. _But._ "

Thea paused, her hand on Kara's arm.

"Before you go, I need some basic information."

\- S -

Kara had to admit that there was already one respect in which this world was better than her own Earth. Here, she had girlfriends, or potential girlfriends.

At home, the Danvers family had been so protective - over-protective, she realized now - of her secret and her powers that she'd had few close friends. She'd had Alex, of course, and nobody could ask for a better sister, but how could you gripe to your sister _about_ your sister?

So Kara griped to Thea while they shopped, all the little things that were so annoying when they happened but could be laughed about later. In exchange, Thea told her about some of Oliver's less heroic antics, before the island - and it was that conversation with Thea that told her just how much Oliver had changed, grown, to become the Green Arrow she was proud to call friend. _More or less_ , she added with amusement.

It was almost sundown when they returned to Thea's loft, and Kara couldn't remember the last time she'd had so much fun she lost track of time.

If it weren't for Oliver's change of clothes, Kara might have believed he hadn't moved from when she'd left him this morning. Now, instead of a T-shirt and cargo trousers, he sat by the fireplace in a dress shirt and slacks, his tie loosened around his neck, and glanced up when the door opened.

"Only two shopping bags each?" he said. "You're losing your touch, Thea."

"She wouldn't let me buy any more," Thea said. "I had to buy a couple of things for myself."

"Of course you did." Oliver gave his sister a fond, amused smile before looking at Kara. "Did you get enough?"

"Enough for now," Kara said. "And if Cisco finds a way to send me home tomorrow, it's too much."

"If he does, then take them with you," Thea said. "They won't fit me, after all."

"And if he doesn't," Oliver put in, "then you'll need this."

He leaned forward to grab a thick manila envelope from the coffee table. With a fluid motion, he stood and sailed it toward Kara. She could only smile as she caught it. His aim was perfect even with oddly-shaped and imbalanced objects, it seemed.

Kara opened it to remove a stack of papers, a passport, a driver's license, a pair of credit cards, a library card, and what looked like a couple of hundred in cash.

"Oliver - how did you get these so fast?"

"You can get anything cheap, fast, or good - as long as you pick any two," he said. "I went for fast and good."

Thea reached over to thumb through the documents Kara held. "Impressive, big brother. Most impressive." She picked up the driver's license. "Even a good driver's license picture - you're smiling."

"What?" Kara yanked the license from her, stared at the picture, then at Oliver. "Where did you get this picture?"

"Barry took it at New Year's."

Then Kara frowned. "What's this address? Central City?"

"I figured you'd want to be close to Cisco," Oliver replied. "It's Joe West's house. Barry and Iris just got their own place, and Joe said you can stay with him as long as you want to."

"Oliver -" Kara broke off, suddenly uncertain. It was strange that such a businesslike thing could make her feel cared for and comforted, but it did, and she wasn't certain why.

"And you'll need this."

Kara looked up to see him toss a small object her way. She snatched it from the air, somehow not dropping the papers she held, and swallowed hard. "A cell phone."

"An encrypted cell phone," he corrected. "All the important numbers are already programmed in."

"It's too much," Kara said.

"Just the basics."

"Still. Thank you." She came around the couch to hug him. From the corner of her eye, she saw Thea grin.


	2. Chapter 2

In the days following Kara's departure, new identity and clothing in hand, Oliver kept an eye on the news from Central City. He knew someone - Barry or Cisco, if not Kara herself - would tell him when ( _if_ , a rebellious part of his mind muttered at him) she returned to her Earth, but in the meantime, he watched for news of her.

Even as he did, he berated himself for a fool - she was her own person, and she didn't need him anymore, not once he got her the documents that would let her start a life on this Earth.

Still, Oliver's chest swelled with pride when he saw the first reports of Supergirl helping the Flash stop a mutated shark - _seriously, Barry? A mutated_ shark? - that had escaped confinement and terrorized Central City.

And he envied Barry and his closeness, not just physical, to Kara.

\- S -

A month after her arrival on Earth-1, Kara's hopes were fading. Cisco hadn't been able to identify, let alone isolate, whatever interference kept him from opening a portal to her Earth. He put up a good front, but Kara wouldn't fool herself: it was looking less and less likely that she'd ever go home to Earth-38.

It was a hard truth that she accepted one night as she perched atop the undamaged spire at .R. Labs, just as she'd once had to accept that her parents were sending her away from the only home she'd ever known, just so she'd have a chance at survival.

But, as she'd said, at least on this Earth she had friends who were willing to help. It could have been much worse, and she thanked Rao that it wasn't.

Her phone vibrated at her hip. Kara pulled it from her pocket and couldn't help smiling when she saw a text from Oliver. He'd texted or called every couple of days, just to check in. Tonight's text was no different.

 _How're you doing?_

 _Well enough_ , she typed. _Surprisingly bored._

 _No metas out and about?_

 _Nope,_ she typed. _And everyone else is busy with their lives._

And I'm alone, she added silently.

His response came immediately. _You know you're always welcome here._

 _Now?_

 _Now._

Kara had barely returned the phone to her pocket before she launched herself into the sky.

\- S -

Kara soared over Star City, scanning for Oliver or any of his team with her super-senses. The distinctive twang of a bowstring released caught her attention and she banked toward the sound.

Of course it came from an alley. She touched down behind four men who faced Oliver. Two of them had machine guns, while the other two brandished semi-automatic pistols. In the face of that, the arrow Oliver had nocked looked pathetically ineffective.

"Not so scary now, are you?" One of the men brandished his machine gun.

"You should be scared of us," another said, more menacingly.

"Why?" Oliver's voice was electronically filtered, but still Kara heard a trace of amusement in it. "You're right where I want you."

"You have your back to a wall, facing two machine guns, and we're right where you want us?" All four of them laughed.

"Yes," Oliver said. "With your backs to her."

Even though Oliver's face was shadowed by his hood, Kara saw the amusement glinting in his eyes.

She smiled back, then said, "So nice of you to line them up for me."

"Just keeping them busy for you."

All four whirled, and in an instant their expressions went from shock to disdain.

"Shoot her!"

Kara moved. Bullets wouldn't even slow her down, but she couldn't risk anyone else - especially Oliver - getting hurt by a ricochet when they bounced off her body.

Five seconds later, all four were on the ground, unconscious, and Oliver was returning his arrow to its place in his quiver. He tapped a button on his suit.

"That's it, Overwatch," he said, and his voice sounded normal. "Tell Detective Malone he has a present waiting for him, and you can call it a night."

"You really kept them busy until I got here?" Kara asked when Oliver ended his call. "That's so sweet."

"Don't let word of that get around," Oliver teased.

"I'm sure no one would believe me. Any other bad guys to go after?"

"Not tonight," he said. "Tonight, my friend needs me more than my city does."

\- S -

Half an hour later, Oliver climbed the ladder to the roof above the loft, an open bottle of wine and two glasses in one hand.

Kara, of course, was already on the roof. She'd changed from her red-and-blue dress into a sweater and casual trousers. "The roof?"

"Warmer tonight than it was when you took me up on a roof," Oliver said. "Besides, it's one of the few non-work related places we can talk without being overheard."

"Good points, both." Kara held the glasses while he poured, then perched on the ledge.

Oliver put the bottle aside and took a position next to her, accepting the glass she offered him. For long minutes, they sat and sipped, watching Star City slowly, finally, fall asleep.

Finally, Oliver said, "How are you _really_ doing?"

"Huh?" Kara frowned at him.

"You're quieter than I've known you to be before. In my experience, when someone's quiet, something's bothering them."

Kara looked down at her glass. "It's dumb."

"It's not."

She gave a half-shrug. "It's just -"

When she was silent too long, Oliver hazarded a guess. "You miss your Earth?"

"Of course," she said. "But that's not it."

"Then what is it?"

"I said before that if I had to be stranded somewhere, at least I'm someplace where I have friends who can help."

"And we are," Oliver said. "Or isn't Cisco still trying to get you home?"

 _He'd damned well_ better _be._ As much as Oliver hoped Kara could stay on his Earth, he'd never wanted her to lose hers. If Cisco wasn't trying to help her, Oliver would have to pay a visit to the other man, bow in hand.

"He is," Kara was hurrying to assure him. "But he's also helping Caitlin with her powers, and Wally with his."

Oliver relaxed muscles he hadn't realized had tensed.

"But it's not just him," Kara continued. "Barry and Iris are starting their life together, and even though I don't feel like that for Barry, I'd just be in the way. Joe's great, but he has a job, and Cecile -"

"You're lonely."

"I said it's dumb." Kara took a swallow of her wine, and when she lowered her glass, Oliver caught her hand in his.

"It's not dumb," he told her firmly. "You're a people person, Kara. They're just not giving you what you need."

She nodded, but didn't say anything.

After a moment, Oliver took a breath. "You don't have to stay in Central City, you know."

"But Cisco's there."

"And he can open a portal to wherever you are when he has news," Oliver reminded her. "Or he can call you and you can be where he is in a -"

"Flash?" Kara suggested, humor lacing her tone.

"Matter of minutes," he finished. "Maybe an hour. You don't have to be tethered to him."

Kara took a sip of her wine, her expression thoughtful. "Where would I go?"

"Anywhere," Oliver replied. "Here, if you wanted." _Please want._

That tiny voice in his head didn't sound like him - not the _him_ that he'd become after Lian Yu. That _him_ had returned to then-Starling City determined to be a lone crusader. Over time, first Dig, then Felicity, and then a double handful of others had joined his crusade even as the crusade changed.

Still, despite those additional comrades and his relationships with Laurel, Sara, Felicity - at some level, he'd still been _him_ , that lone crusader accepting assistance only reluctantly. Why was he now hoping Kara would move to Star City, even if she never joined his crusade?

"Really?"

Oliver chuckled. "You don't have to sound so skeptical."

Kara looked away, and even in the dim light, Oliver could see pink tinging her cheek. "I was just - would it be any different in Star City than in Central City?"

"I'm not in a relationship you'd get in the way of." Oliver tried to keep his tone light, and judging by Kara's smile, he managed it.

After a moment, she nodded. "Okay."

\- S -

Since Kara had moved to Starling City, dinner with Oliver and Thea had become a Sunday night ritual - assuming there were no crises that required the intervention of Mayor Queen, Green Arrow, or Supergirl. Tonight, Kara was hosting, and as soon as she put dinner in the oven, she sped-washed the dishes so the apartment would be clean when they arrived.

Except when she opened the door, only Oliver stood in the hallway.

"Where's Thea?"

"She has a date."

Kara blinked. "There's someone who's actually good enough for your sister?"

"She thinks so," Oliver said. "And that's what matters. She may not be you, but I'd be more worried for him if he tried something she didn't want."

Kara had to laugh at that. "Good point."

"Besides," Oliver added, "if it starts to get serious, Felicity will run a background check."

"Isn't that … overkill?" Kara asked.

"I don't want her to have to keep secrets from him, if he's the one for her."

Barry's words from the party last New Year's Eve came back to her. _Oliver has an odd way of showing he cares._

"Makes sense," was all she said. "C'mon in. The lasagna's almost done."

"Smells great." Oliver took a step into the apartment, then paused, frowning slightly. "You're actually using the oven?"

Kara shut the door behind him and led the way toward the tiny kitchen. "I found a chocolate torte recipe I wanted to try, and even with heat vision, I can't speed up the chemistry in baking."

"So there's something Supergirl can't do?"

Kara glared at him, even as she grinned in response to his teasing. Oliver set the bottle of wine he'd brought on the kitchen island and went to the cabinet where Kara kept the glasses.

"I got a job," she blurted, then winced. She'd meant to tell him, but she hadn't meant to sound like a nervous schoolgirl when she did.

"What kind of job?"

"You know I've been writing letters to the editor at the _Sentinel_ , right?"

Oliver nodded. "And commenting on some of their opinion pieces."

Kara stared at him. "You read the _Sentinel_?"

Oliver ducked his head, and if he were anyone else, Kara would have thought his expression was … sheepish? "Felicity does. She tells me about them. Seeing your perspective on things is interesting."

"Even when I don't agree with what you do as mayor?"

"Especially then."

"Oh." Kara felt herself flushing at the warmth in his gaze - maybe even approval? She found herself hoping so. "I guess my comments are more popular than their columnists. Or that's what the editor said when he emailed me and offered me a regular column."

"Congratulations." Oliver handed her a glass of the wine he'd poured while she spoke, then tapped his glass to hers. "To Star City's newest columnist."

She sipped, but before she could say anything else, the timer on the oven dinged. Kara set her glass aside and turned to pull the lasagna and the torte from the oven. Oliver moved around her in the tiny kitchen, getting plates and flatware. As tight as the quarters were, he never bumped into her, barely even brushed against her, and she found herself wondering if he were avoiding touching her on purpose.

 _If he is, it's your own fault_. Since she'd moved to Star City, even since she'd been on this Earth, Kara hadn't made any move to continue their sexual relationship, and gentleman that he was, Oliver hadn't pushed her for anything she didn't want to give him.

She hadn't wanted to give him anything - give more of herself to him than she already had - when she'd expected to be going home soon. Now, though…

Now, Kara tried to keep the conversation light through dinner, but it felt strained even to her, and Oliver's quizzical expression told him he felt the difference, as well.

She was surprised that he waited until she served slices of chocolate torte before saying, "What's wrong, Kara?"

"Nothing's wrong," she answered immediately.

"Really? Because we've never talked like this before."

She laughed, a nervous reflex. "We talk all the time, Oliver."

"Yes. We _talk_. We don't make conversation, and that's all you've done this evening. So what's wrong?"

"Nothing," Kara said, then added, "not wrong. Just … different."

"What's different, then?" His tone gentled, and she swallowed.

"What's different is that I'm realizing that I probably won't go home."

"Don't give up hope, Kara. Cisco and Barry are doing all they can -"

"I _know_." She hadn't meant the words to come out so sharply, and she swallowed before repeating, "I'm not giving up hope, but it's been four months. I have to make a life here."

"You are," Oliver pointed out. "You just told me about your job, and you have this apartment. You have friends."

"I do, and I'm grateful for all of that." Kara took a breath and looked up to meet his gaze. "But I've just been going through the motions, thinking that tomorrow I might go home. I'll never give up hope, but I have to start living, really _living_ the life I have on this Earth in the meantime."

She held his gaze, tension making her throat tight, willing him to understand the things she didn't know how to say.

Then he smiled, and even as a part of her relaxed, a different tension knotted in her stomach.

Oliver stretched a hand toward her and pushed back from the table. Kara stood, and blinked when he simply sat there, waiting. A moment later, she realized what he wanted, and she rose to float over the table and into his lap.

His arms came around her and he nuzzled his lips against her ear. "Kara."

"I thought you never miss," she murmured and turned her mouth to meet his.

It was as though they'd never touched before, never kissed, and Kara could only savor the moment and the heat that spread from her belly throughout her body as he explored her mouth, teasing with his tongue, nibbling her lower lip with his teeth. It didn't hurt - it _couldn't_ hurt - but somehow lightning sang along her nerves and she moaned against his mouth.

"I missed you," he rasped, and she shivered before kissing him again.

When his hand slid up under her skirt, she moaned and parted her legs to give him better access. She'd missed him, too, but his touch distracted her enough that she couldn't form the words to say so. Instead, she tried to show him with her reactions, with her exploration of his body, with her kisses.

Then her focus narrowed, narrowed to that point between her legs, and the tension coiling there where his fingers worked and stroked her, and all she wanted was to pull him closer, cling to him as he brought her over the edge.


	3. Chapter 3

Several orgasms and about as many hours later, Kara lay snuggled against Oliver's side as he stroked her hair, her fingers idly tracing the tattoo on his chest.

"Tell me about it?" she murmured, unwilling to let the closeness they'd shared fade into sleep just yet.

"It marks me as a captain in the _bratva_ ," Oliver said. "Formerly, at least."

"What's the _bratva_?" Kara frowned. Then, "Oh - the Russian mob?"

"Mm-hm."

"Is it possible to be a former member?" Kara asked.

"I had a … difference of opinion with them."

"What kind of difference of opinion?"

"I wouldn't do a favor for them." Oliver paused, though his fingers kept up their soothing movement. "But the man who told me I was no longer associated with them was killed not long after that. Maybe the word didn't get out."

Kara nodded against his chest in acknowledgment, then traced a line of characters down his abdomen. "Is this Chinese?"

"An obscure dialect, I think," Oliver said. "The guy who gave it to me told me it was for protection, but didn't tell me anything more."

Kara tilted her head up to frown at him. "Most people know what the tattoos they're getting mean - or at least what they think it means."

"I didn't ask." Oliver shrugged as best he could while lying down. "I didn't know what to ask. And since then, it hasn't been important."

"What about the dragon on your shoulder?"

"That's to honor someone I loved once," Oliver said quietly. "I don't want to lie to you, Kara, but there are some things I'm not ready to talk about yet."

"I'll listen whenever you are." Kara stretched up to kiss him and let him pull her closer.

"There is one thing I want to talk with you about."

"What's that?"

He smiled, a rueful expression. "I'm a public figure. There'll be questions, like when did we meet?"

Kara felt her eyes go wide. "You mean - you want to go out in public?"

He stilled beside her - not tense, exactly, but not as relaxed as he had been. Even his hand in her hair stopped. "You don't?"

"No, no - that's not what I meant," Kara hurried to assure him. "I just - I know you can be secretive. I didn't want to assume."

Oliver relaxed, at least a little, she thought, and there might have been a hint of amusement in his voice when he spoke again. "I should've known your girls' nights with Thea and Felicity would come back at me."

Kara started to speak, but he brought a finger to her lips.

"I can be," he admitted slowly. "And it's hard to break the habit. But it's not always about keeping secrets. Sometimes, like I said, there'll be things I'm not ready to talk about. And, sometimes, I won't see that someone else feels like she should be told something that I think only affects me."

"Sounds like you're speaking from experience," Kara murmured.

"It's why Felicity left. She said I left her out of a decision, that I didn't know how to lean on a partner when things get complicated."

"Tell me about it?"

"I have a son," Oliver said, the words coming in a rush. "His name is William, he's ten, and I'll probably never see him again."

Of all the things he might have said, Kara would never have expected that. He looked like he had more to say, so she simply held him and waited.

"It's complicated, but - I didn't know he existed until last year," Oliver continued, and his tone had fallen to a monotone. "And just as I was starting to get to know him - not as a father, just as a friend of his mother's - Damien Darhk tried to use him against me."

"Oliver," Kara breathed.

"So his mother took him away," Oliver went on in that same, flat voice. "I don't know where, and I don't know their new identities. It's safer for them."

"But harder for you."

"Necessary."

"I understand." Kara hesitated a moment. "Felicity didn't agree?"

"No, she agreed it's the right decision. But Samantha - William's mother - and I made it."

Kara frowned. "Of course. Who else _could_?"

Oliver glanced down at her, frowning in turn, and Kara had to smile at it.

"You're his parents, Oliver - you and Samantha. Nobody else had any right to participate in that decision." Kara thought about that for a moment, then added, "Well, a step-parent who'd been helping raise him. Anyone else? I don't think so."

"Felicity was upset that I left her out of the decision."

"She has the right to feel how she feels," Kara said. "And I have the right not to agree with her."

Oliver shifted beneath her, but was silent so long that she had to look up at him once again. She blinked when she saw his expression of … wonder? She wasn't certain.

"What?" she asked.

He smiled. "Just thinking how super you really are."

\- S -

Ever since Christopher Chance had shown him that it was okay to let a little of the Hood show in Oliver Queen, Oliver had learned to enjoy politics - or, as Councilman Kullens called it, the art of the real.

He'd also figured out that he had an advantage no one else did, in that his skeletons weren't in closets. Instead, they'd been splashed all over the local news during his rebellious, irresponsible teenage years.

His parents surely had entire armies of skeletons waiting to be resurrected and used against him, but those skeletons weren't his. And, it wasn't likely that anyone would expect pre-island Oliver even to have known what the concept of _skeleton in the closet_ meant, let alone have been part of creating those skeletons.

So Oliver approached this meeting with Councilwoman Tyler with more than a little anticipation. His mission was to understand her objections to redevelopment and rebuilding of parts of the Glades still hurting from the Undertaking and, if those objections were personal rather than political, to find a way under, around, or through them.

He'd just pushed the door to the conference room - neutral territory, in a way neither of their offices would've been - open when his phone vibrated with an incoming text message.

Oliver frowned minutely. There was nothing he was keeping a special eye on in either of his identities, so he ignored the vibration in favor of greeting the councilwoman with a smile.

"Councilwoman. Good to see you."

"I doubt that," she replied. "Given that we don't see eye to eye."

"Not agreeing doesn't mean we can't be civil," Oliver replied. "My parents used to agree to disagree agreeably, and I try to follow their example." _Unless the disagreement requires an arrow._

"Hm," Tyler's expression was as noncommittal as her response. Oliver's phone vibrated again, and despite Tyler's raised eyebrow, he ignored it.

"I just want to understand your objection to the Glades project," Oliver said.

"It's a lot of money to rebuild," Tyler said. "Money the city can't afford to spend, especially if it won't ever be repaid."

"I'd agree with you if this were a typical urban renewal effort," Oliver said. "But it's not. It's the result of a vile effort to cleanse undesirable elements from the city."

"An effort in which your mother was complicit."

"And she paid for her part in it," Oliver countered evenly. "Especially for her part in trying to prevent it - or at least warn people it was coming so they could evacuate the Glades. Which is the point. We're rebuilding what was there, not imposing changes we think would be better."

Tyler opened her mouth to reply, but before she could speak, the door to the conference room banged open and Thea hurried in.

Oliver frowned at his sister. "What're you doing here, Thea?"

"You didn't answer your phone," she said.

"I'm in a meeting," Oliver pointed out.

"Kara's been kidnapped."

"What? _How?_ "

"When she and Felicity were coming out of Rigatoni's after lunch," Thea said. "Two guys shoved Felicity away and dragged Kara into their van."

Oliver had meant his question in the sense of, _How did anyone kidnap Supergirl?,_ not _How did the kidnapping happen?_ But Thea's explanation answered it anyway. They'd pulled her off the street, in a public setting where she wouldn't use her powers and expose her identity.

Oliver shoved that analysis aside and turned to Councilwoman Tyler. "Can we reschedule?"

"Of course," Tyler agreed immediately, and Oliver barely nodded an acknowledgment before turning to leave the room with Thea.

"What happened?" he asked quietly.

"That's all we know," she replied equally quietly. "Felicity called the police, then you, and then me when you didn't answer. She said she's going to hack the traffic cameras and try to track the van wherever it ended up."

"All right," Oliver said. "We'll have to -"

He broke off when he saw Detective Malone coming toward them, his expression grim. "Mr. Mayor -"

"I know," Oliver cut him off. "Thea told me."

"Felicity called me after she called you," Thea added to Malone's questioning expression.

"I should've known," he muttered. "Where can we talk?"

"My office," Oliver said and led the way.

\- S -

Oliver considered himself fairly skilled at ditching a tail, even when said tail was a bodyguard assigned to protect him - see, John Diggle.

But when half of the Star City Police Department camped out in his office, led by none other than Felicity's boyfriend who didn't know the truth of his identity, Oliver was stymied. At least temporarily.

For now, he had to sit with Thea and Malone and wait for a call from whoever had taken Kara. It would be easier in some ways if Malone knew his secret, Oliver mused - and then rejected that thought when he remembered Malone's almost hero-worshipful attitude toward the Green Arrow. That attitude, while flattering, would be more of a hindrance than a help.

Still, maybe he could use Malone's attitude toward Green Arrow later.

"I hate sitting around like this," Thea muttered. "I feel so … useless."

"They also serve who stand and wait," Malone said. "There's nothing more you can do. We're doing everything we can, and Felicity said she'll do what she can."

Thea flicked a startled glance at Oliver, and he nodded fractionally. Then his phone rang.

He checked the display, saw that Kara was calling - more accurately, someone was using her phone to call him. Unthinking, he answered it. "Kara?"

"She's alive," a male voice answered. "And she'll stay that way if you do what we say."

Beside Oliver, Malone was scowling, gesturing for him to put the phone on speaker mode. Reluctantly, Oliver did so.

"What do you want?" he asked.

"One million dollars," the man replied. Malone rolled his fingers, a _keep him talking_ gesture.

"On a civil servant's salary?" Oliver projected disbelief.

The man snorted. "Pocket change for a Queen."

"You must be new to town. I lost my family's company a couple of years ago -"

"You're just buying time for your cop friends to trace the call. It won't work. You have twenty-four hours."

"I want proof of life," Oliver said. "Or we're done."

There was a moment's hesitation, a rustling sound, then Kara's voice. "There are three of them - _uff_!"

The slap of flesh hitting flesh echoed from the phone, and Oliver winced in unwilling sympathy for the man who'd tried to hit a Kryptonian.

"We'll call you back in twenty-four hours," the man said, and the call ended.

Malone's expression was reluctantly impressed. "Smart of her, to give us information like that."

Oliver smiled tightly. "I don't date stupid women."

Malone let that pass without comment. "They weren't on the line long enough to get a trace. I'll find out whether they were able to ping her phone's GPS, but these guys aren't amateurs - that's not to say they're pros," he added quickly, as though realizing he might have given the wrong impression.

"You do whatever you need to, Detective," Oliver said. "In the meantime, I have to try to arrange a million-dollar loan."


	4. Chapter 4

Being kidnapped was boring, Kara decided.

Sure, there'd been the initial flurry of excitement when she was grabbed, but as soon as an x-ray vision look through the hood they'd pulled over her head confirmed that Felicity was all right, Kara had given in to the event and allowed the men to take her where they would.

After that, they'd handcuffed her to a chair and turned on an old television before taking the hood off and moving away. They'd conferred briefly, then made the ransom call.

To their credit, her kidnappers had kept their faces covered - ski masks; effective if unoriginal - when she could see them, so the only information she could give Oliver was, "There are three of them," before the one holding the phone backhanded her.

Kara rolled with the blow so he wouldn't break his hand, and when the call ended, they put her back in front of the television, where she'd sat ever since.

For a time, she amused herself by listening in on their conversation with each other - Oliver would want to know whether this was really the simple event it seemed or whether it was part of a larger effort aimed at either of his identities - but she didn't learn anything of use.

The shatter of glass overhead made her look up to see five men in combat gear rappelling down the walls. At the same time, both the front and back doors of the warehouse exploded inward.

Kara threw herself sideways to land on the floor, and then watched as Star City's finest swarmed the warehouse and overwhelmed the three men who'd kidnapped her.

 _Where's Oliver?_ she wondered briefly, but then the officers were cleaning up and one of them knelt beside her to remove the handcuffs.

"Are you all right, ma'am?" he asked as he helped her to her feet.

"I'm fine," she told him. "They didn't hurt me."

The SWAT officers led her from the warehouse into afternoon sun, and even with her super-vision, Kara blinked against the sudden brightness.

"Kara!"

And there was Oliver, rushing toward her.

He caught her in his arms and held her, murmuring, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," in a tone so low that even her super-hearing had trouble picking it up.

She pulled away to frown up at him, but he shook his head as though to say, _not here_.

And then she saw the reporters arriving, and understood that any serious discussion would have to wait until later.

\- S -

Finally, the last questions had been asked and answered, and her statement taken, and Kara was happy to let Oliver guide her back to her apartment.

The door closed behind them, and she found herself enveloped in his arms again.

"I'm so sorry," he murmured. "I knew you'd be okay, so I let the police handle it."

"It's okay, Oliver," Kara told him. "I get it."

"It's not okay," he declared. "I shouldn't react any differently than I would if they'd taken Felicity, or Thea, or anyone else."

"But I'm not anyone else. I'm me - super powers and all. You _should_ take that into account, even when, or maybe especially when, it helps you in other ways."

"Other ways?" Oliver pulled back to look down at her with a puzzled expression.

"The police got a win," Kara said. "And, honestly, they needed one. The city shouldn't rely on Team Arrow to … What?"

"Felicity's got you saying Team Arrow, too."

"Well, you are a team. But the point is that the city needs to know the police are there, too, and if my being kidnapped helps, I'm okay with that."

He was quiet for a long moment before he nodded. "It still feels wrong, somehow."

 _Because you're a hero and you want to save everybody._ Kara didn't say the words aloud - he wouldn't appreciate them. Instead, she simply raised her mouth to his, and let her body say them for her.

\- S -

It took Oliver longer than he would have liked to identify what he was feeling these days. Finally making some progress against the corruption in Star City government, keeping most of the petty criminals terrified, and - maybe most importantly - spending time with Kara all added up to something he couldn't quite name.

Then a snippet of a conversation he'd had with Barry came back to him, and he knew.

 _"We both got a look at what life would look like normal."_

 _"It would've been happy."_

 _"But not full."_

For once, his life was both full _and_ happy. Oliver hadn't thought it possible, but now that he knew it was, he was determined to keep that feeling.

A glance at the clock told him it was nearly lunchtime - and for a moment, he felt guilty for letting his mind wander when he was in the office. He pushed that thought aside and pulled on his blazer before taking the few steps from his office to Thea's.

"Do you have plans for lunch?" he asked.

She blinked. "Not that I know of. Have I forgotten something?"

"No," Oliver assured her. "I wondered if you'd come shopping with me."

"Shopping." Thea gave him a dubious expression. "Oliver Queen wants to go shopping?"

"For something specific, and you know Kara pretty well, so you can help me pick out a ring she'll like."

"I do," Thea agreed, and then Oliver smiled as he watched as she comprehended the rest of his sentence.

"A ring," she said slowly. "You're buying her a ring?"

"I am."

Thea flung herself at him, and Oliver caught her in his arms. Her own tightened around him and she said, "I'm so happy for you, big brother."


	5. Chapter 5

James Olsen took a deep breath and let it out, then stepped through the portal he'd opened with the device Cisco had given Kara more than a year ago, when she'd helped stop an alien invasion on Cisco's Earth.

Beside him, Alex Danvers paced him. The portal closed behind them, and James secured Cisco's device in a pocket of his trousers that had a closure.

"Are you sure it worked?" Alex asked, surveying the street where they'd emerged skeptically. "It looks a lot like where we just left."

She was right. They'd come through onto a street lined with shops and restaurants, just like one they'd see in National City - Thai and Peurto Rican restaurants, a laundry, a hair salon, a shoe repair shop, what looked like a convenience store. It looked to be early morning, and few of those shops had opened yet.

"The two Earths are a lot alike," James told her. "And from what Kara and Cisco said, this device only works between our Earth and theirs."

"How do we find out for sure?" Alex asked, her voice just-so-slightly shaky.

"Let's find out where we are first. Look for a phone booth, or a newspaper, maybe a public building. We _should_ be in Central City."

A familiar _whoosh_ sounded behind him, and James let out a relieved sigh before smiling and turning toward the sound. His smile died on his lips when he saw the man standing before them. Aside from the differences in the costume - this speedster wore yellow and red - he was black, so he wasn't Barry Allen.

"We don't take kindly to interdimensional visitors dropping in unannounced," the man said.

"Guessing that's not him?" Alex murmured.

"No," James replied. "He's not the Flash I know."

Not-Flash frowned. "You know Flash?"

"Yeah," James said. "He wears an all-red suit with a cowl that covers his whole head. Sometimes hangs out with an archer in a green hood."

Not-Flash's frown deepened. "That sounds like Flash and Green Arrow. But how -"

In another _whoosh_ of wind, a second speedster arrived, this one all in red. James wanted to relax, but there was still no way to be certain they were on what Cisco called Earth-1.

"Beat you," Not-Flash said.

"I stopped to get a pregnant woman to the hospital. It's not always about how fast you are," the new Flash said, and his voice was familiar.

James allowed himself to relax fractionally, enough to address the newcomer. "Trainee?"

"Yeah," the new Flash, and James was more convinced by the second that the man beneath this mask was, in fact, Barry Allen. "I haven't sicced Green Arrow on him yet."

James ventured a grin at Not-Flash. "Lucky you. He's a hell of a taskmaster."

Flash - Barry, James hoped - chuckled. "Yeah, he is. So what're you doing here - wait. What _are_ you doing here? I thought the way between worlds was blocked."

"It is," James agreed, then corrected himself. "It was. Whatever Mxyzptlk did wore off."

Alex stepped forward. "Mxyzptlk threw Kara between the worlds, said she'd be stuck there forever. We need your help to find her."

Flash frowned at her. "Sorry - who are you?"

"Alex Danvers. Kara's sister. Can you help us?" James' heart clenched at the desperate hope in her tone.

Flash - Barry - grinned. "Definitely. And we've got some good news for you."

James breathed out a relieved sigh and smiled at Alex. Barry's words could only mean one thing. "She's here."

\- S -

Since Kara had moved to Star City, Oliver had tried not to work late at the mayor's office, so that he could have dinner with her and maybe catch a power nap before he put on the hood and went to work his second shift.

Instead, he came in early, sometimes a full hour before the staff arrived. The first time he'd done it, he'd nearly frightened his assistant, Cassandra, into spilling her coffee when he emerged from his office to refill his own cup. She'd adapted to his early hours since then, and taken enough from the petty cash fund to buy a programmable coffeepot, so that hot coffee was waiting for him whenever he arrived.

Just after eight a.m., Oliver stood to greet the staff and pour his second cup of the morning. Before he could get to the door, his phone buzzed with an incoming text message.

Briefly, he debated getting his coffee before answering, but duty won out, and he picked up his phone, one eyebrow lifting in surprise as he saw a message from Barry Allen.

 _Mind telling the jack-booted thugs down here to let us up?_

Surprise turned to confusion, but it was an easy confusion to remedy. He picked up his office phone and punched in the extension for the security station at the main entrance.

"Yes, sir?" the officer on duty answered.

"Is someone asking to see me - tops six feet by an inch or so, almost skinny and a face that's so openly honest it's painful?" Oliver asked.

There was a muffled sound that might have been a snort before a careful, "Yes, sir. Says his name is Barry Allen and that he's a friend of yours."

"He is," Oliver confirmed. "Send him up."

"Yes, sir," the officer said again with barely-concealed surprise. "And his companions?"

Companions? Oliver frowned, but checked Barry's text again. He'd said _us._ Still, it never hurt to be extra cautious.

"Do you think he's being coerced?" Oliver asked.

There was a moment's silence, and Oliver thought the question might have surprised the officer. Then, "No, I don't."

"Then send his companions up, too." Oliver ended the call, wondering what could have brought the Flash to Star City so early in the morning, and with whom. Then he picked up the phone again and alerted Cassandra that he'd be having visitors.

A few minutes later, his office door opened to reveal Barry Allen, a black man he didn't recognize but concluded must be Wally West, and behind them - James Olsen and Alex Danvers? What were they doing here?

But the manners his mother had drilled into him overcame curiosity. He grinned at Barry and shook hands before turning to greet James and Alex, momentarily surprised when Alex came forward to hug him.

Then he turned to the last member of Barry's group.

"Oliver Queen," he said and offered his hand.

"Wally. West," the younger man added. "Kid Flash."

Oliver bit back a laugh. "You should ask Cisco to work on that code name."

"Maybe." Wally's tone suggested it would be a cold day in hell before he did that.

Oliver gave a mental shrug - it was Wally's choice, but Oliver would always choose to create his own identity rather than ride on someone else's coattails.

Then he was gesturing his visitors to the sitting area at one end of his office and met Barry's gaze. "What's going on?"

"In case you didn't notice," Barry said, "the barrier between worlds is open again."

He'd noticed. He just hadn't wanted to face the implications. But now those implications were staring him in the face, and Oliver shoved the ball of nerves that threatened to overwhelm him far, far down in his gut.

"You're here for Kara," he said, looking first at James, then at Alex.

"She can come home now," James agreed, his voice almost completely neutral.

Alex, less controlled, sat forward. "Where is she?"

Oliver felt his lips quirking into a hint of a smile. "Turkmenistan."

James and Alex glanced at each other before Alex said, "We don't have a Turkmenistan in our world. Where is it?"

"Borders Afghanistan and Iran," Oliver said. "Maybe you call Iran Persia?"

"No," she said. "I understand Afghanistan and Iran. Why is she there?"

"Earthquake early this morning, our time," Oliver explained. "Seven point six magnitude. She went to help rescue survivors."

Alex blew out a breath. "So there's no telling when she'll be back."

"No," Oliver agreed, and summoned a smile from somewhere. "In the meantime, would you like to see my world?"

\- S -

Kara smiled as the Star City skyline loomed before her, silhouetted in the sunset. It had been a long, long day, and all she wanted now was a hot shower - longer than ten seconds, this time - a good meal, and Oliver curled around her while she told him about the rescue efforts and he told her about his day.

A moment's debate had Kara turning toward the loft rather than her apartment. She'd been so eager to get home that she forgot to call Oliver to give him her ETA, and she assumed that, with no idea when she'd be back, he went home after dealing with the City Council all day.

Over the months since they'd officially started dating, each of them had accumulated a handful of changes of clothes at the other's place, but tonight she was looking forward to pulling on one of his T-shirts and not much else.

Kara sped up as she made for the roof entrance to the loft. The shower was running and her super-suit in the laundry basket seconds later. When the water steamed, she stepped under the spray and washed the dirt and grief of Turkmenistan away.

When she finally emerged from the shower, it was fully dark outside. Surely Oliver would be home by now. Kara pulled one of his T-shirts over her head and padded on bare feet out of his/their bedroom and down the stairs, only to find the loft dark and empty.

She retrieved her phone and sent Oliver a text. _Gone out already?_

His answering text came quickly. _Out for a drink with friends. You're back?_

She smiled. _At the loft. Waiting for you._

The smile faded as she read his response. _We'll be there soon._

 _We?_ What friends might be joining him? Kara shook her head and set her phone aside.

Then, realizing that she probably shouldn't greet Oliver's guests, whoever they were, wearing only his T-shirt, she turned to go back upstairs and dress properly.

The door opened just as she was coming back downstairs, and she smiled when she saw Oliver.

She ran the last few steps, and he caught her in his arms. "How was Turkmenistan?"

How he phrased the question told her that his friends knew the truth about her, and Kara relaxed slightly. "Very Turkmenistani. But I helped save lives, and that's good."

"That's very good," Oliver agreed, then looked down at her. "How are _you_?"

"Fine," Kara assured him. "Tired, of course - it was a lot of work, even for me - but fine. You said you brought friends?"

"Uh-huh. Your friends." Oliver took a step away from her, allowing Kara to see…

"James! Alex!" Kara launched herself at them. "Oh, Rao - it's _good_ to see you. But how did you get here?"

"Mxyzptlk's spell, whatever he did, wore off," James said, squeezing her tightly once before letting Alex hug her.

"We never stopped looking for you," Alex said, her voice rough thanks to the tears gathering in her eyes. "Every week, I'd try that thing -"

"Interdimensional extrapolator," James provided.

Alex barely nodded an acknowledgment before continuing, "We figured that the only people who could help us find you were the ones who made it. I never thought we'd find you here."

"Speaking of that," James said, "how _did_ you get here?"

Kara pulled away from Alex to smile at him. "I remembered something Oliver told you."

"What?"

"I stopped trying to _see_ my way home, and tried to _feel_ it."

Kara saw James' eyes widen and his glance slide toward Oliver before Alex was hugging her again. "Now you can come home for real."

Kara pulled out of her sister's embrace and focused on Oliver. He'd stood silently, head bowed and hands stuffed in his pockets, while she reunited with her friends.

"Oliver?" she asked quietly.

He looked up and smiled. Kara thought it looked forced, but his voice was steady when he said, "If anyone gets being stranded somewhere and wanting to go home, it's me. Besides, we knew this would happen someday."

 _Knew_ was too strong a word, Kara thought. She'd _hoped_ it would happen, even _wanted_ it to happen when she was first stranded here. But over time, her hope faded as she built a life here on Earth-1, in Star City. Of course her friends would find her just as she'd started wondering whether she wanted them to.

She swallowed down that tangled mass of feelings and said, "I need to get my suit. It's upstairs."

"Hurry," Alex called after her. "Wynn and Hank are waiting - and Mom and Clark."

Kara couldn't bring herself to hurry. Still, it was only a few minutes before she'd dug her suit out of the hamper and draped it over one arm. When she came back downstairs, James had the interdimensional extrapolator in his hand. Beside him, Alex was practically bouncing on her toes with excitement.

But Kara crossed to Oliver. "Say goodbye to everyone for me."

"I will," Oliver promised.

Kara smiled, a little. "I'd say take care of yourself, but it'd be a waste of breath."

Oliver chuckled. "Back at you."

Then he opened his arms, and Kara stepped into them, savoring the warmth of him, the strength that, non-super though it was, she'd leaned on so often since her arrival on Earth-1. The memory made her hold him tighter, and though he tensed, he didn't object.

She didn't want to let go - but she had to. If she didn't let go now, she wouldn't, and she couldn't disappoint her sister like that. With a deep breath, she took a step back. Oliver's arms dropped, and she felt cooler as she turned to James and Alex.

"Ready," she said.

James activated the interdimensional extrapolator, and a portal swirled open before them. Alex grabbed her hand and tugged her forward. Kara didn't dare look back as she followed Alex through the portal.

She thought she heard James' voice as she stepped into her own Earth. "Sorry, man."

Then the portal closed behind them.

\- S -

James deactivated the extrapolator and shoved it in his pocket. Just as Alex had said, Winn and Hank, Eliza and Clark, even Mon-El, had gathered to welcome Kara home. Almost immediately, Kara was lost to view as they surrounded her.

Alex grabbed his arm. "I thought we'd all go to dinner to celebrate Kara getting home."

James shook his head even as he shook her hand from his arm. "No, thanks."

Alex frowned at him. "Aren't you glad she's home?"

"I'm glad she's safe," he amended. "But it's been a year. Things have changed."

"Not that much," Alex declared.

James shrugged. "I hope you're right."


	6. Chapter 6

Thea was waiting for him when Oliver returned from his patrol. Star City was entirely too quiet for his preference these days. He knew he should be grateful for the quiet - it meant he and his team were making a difference, however small - but since Kara's departure, Oliver's itch to have an excuse to bust some heads had gone largely unscratched, and he was getting annoyed.

Some of that annoyance bled into his tone when he greeted his sister. "I thought you'd be in bed already."

"I want to be in bed already," Thea countered.

"Why aren't you?"

"Because I'm worried about you."

"I'm fine," Oliver declared, hoping that would be the end of it. He should've known better.

"Physically, sure," Thea agreed. "But since Kara left, you've been grumpy as a bear. Even Councilwoman Tyler noticed."

Oliver snorted in disbelief as he strode to the refrigerator for a sports drink. It may have been a quiet few nights, but he still got in a workout and needed the hydration.

"She has. And that just means it'll be harder to work with her - and the other council members."

"So - what?" Oliver asked. "You want me to resign?"

"No. That would be bad for the city and bad for you. I want you to go after her."

Oliver blinked, confused by the apparent _non sequitur_. "Councilwoman Tyler?"

Thea gave him a _don't be an idiot_ look. "Kara."

" _What?_ "

"I want you to go after her," Thea repeated. "Tell her you were an idiot for letting her go, then give her that ring you've been carrying around since she left and beg her to come back here, with you, where she belongs."

Oliver swallowed, hard, reluctant to acknowledge the surge of almost primal ferocity Thea's suggestion had caused. He forced it down, and somehow kept his voice level when he answered.

"She could've stayed. But she went home, and I don't blame her for that."

Thea quirked an eyebrow at him. "Did you give her a reason to stay?"

"She knows how I feel." _Or she should._

With an exasperated noise, Thea rose from the couch and came to stare him in the eyes. He managed not to flinch, barely.

"Sometimes," she said, "you really are an idiot." Then she turned and stalked up the stairs.

Oliver tossed the empty sport bottle into the recycling bin, then pulled the box that held Kara's ring from a pocket to turn it in his fingers.

He'd hoped Kara would stay, or that she'd come back, but nearly a week passed since she went home. If she were going to come back, she'd already be back.

 _Did you give her a reason to stay?_

 _"She knows how I feel."_

In his mind's echo of them, Thea's question sounded accusatory and his answer sounded defensive, even evasive. Oliver blew out a breath. He was neither of those things, and he'd be damned if he'd become either of them just because the woman he loved had left him.

Tossing the ring box into the air, he followed his sister up the stairs.

\- S -

If anyone asked, Cisco would tell them he was working on improvements to his gauntlets, the better to control his powers. He was really working on a part of his _Voltron: Legendary Defender_ cosplay.

So when his phone rang, he didn't even bother to check the caller ID, just blindly reached to tap the screen and answer the call. "Yo."

"I need a favor, Cisco."

The voice made him turn and double-check that yes, that was in fact Oliver Queen on the other end of the line.

"Who's asking?" Cisco countered. "Oliver or Green Arrow?"

"Does it matter?"

Cisco pondered that for a moment before deciding that having either Oliver Queen or Green Arrow owe him a favor wasn't a bad thing. "Guess not. What kind of favor?"

"Rather not discuss it over the phone. Can you come to Star City?"

Cisco regarded the part he was working on, made a few mental calculations. "I'll be at the Arrowcave in fifteen."

\- S -

When Cisco stepped through the portal from Central City into the Arrowcave, Oliver was waiting for him, scowling.

"It's not a cave," Oliver told him.

"It's dark as one." Cisco pulled off his glasses to emphasize the point. "What do you need?"

"Transportation to Kara's Earth."

Of all the requests Oliver might have made, Cisco hadn't thought of that one. But now Oliver had said it, the comments Felicity had made during their occasional geek-chats made sense, and Cisco understood completely. "Yeah, you owe me for this. Now?"

"No time like the present."

If nothing else, Cisco thought, at least he'd have better gossip than Felicity for once. He slipped his glasses back on and opened a portal to Earth-38.

\- S -

Oliver was surprised when he stepped through the portal and into familiar surroundings - the Department of Extranormal Operations - and then he thought he shouldn't be, if Cisco had focused on arriving near Kara. He knew from his previous trip that she spent a lot of time here.

But she wasn't here now - or at least, she wasn't close enough to notice his arrival. A double handful of agents, however, _were_ close enough, and reacted quickly. Within a second or two, a dozen weapons were pointed at him.

Beside him, Cisco was starting to panic. "I can re-open a portal -"

"No," Oliver told him. "It's okay. I've been here before."

He felt more than saw Cisco's sharp glare, but he was focused on the people facing them. Oliver held his hands away from his sides in an _I'm unarmed_ gesture and raised his voice when he spoke again.

"My name is Oliver Queen. I'm here to see Agent Alex Danvers or Agent Winn Schott."

At Winn's name, Cisco relaxed, if only fractionally, but the weapons pointed at them didn't waver. Oliver held himself still, and waited.

He didn't have to wait long.

"Stand down," a deep male voice ordered, and then Director Henshaw was pushing through the wall of agents to face Oliver. "Took you long enough."

Oliver raised an eyebrow, wondering what he meant by that.

Henshaw raised a challenging eyebrow in return. "Unless there's another alien invasion?"

"No," Oliver said. "I'm here to see Kara."

"Which is why I expected you sooner," Henshaw said. Beside them, Cisco tried unconvincingly to stifle a laugh.

Oliver put his confusion aside. "Where is she?"

"The green room. Schott!" Henshaw bellowed, then stuck a finger in Oliver's face. "Don't make me regret this."

Winn rushed up to them. "Sir? Oh, hey, Oliver. Cisco."

"Show them to the green room." With a final glare at Oliver, Henshaw stalked away.

"Green room?" Cisco asked once Henshaw was safely out of earshot. "Like a TV studio waiting room?"

"Better," Winn said, gesturing them to follow with a jerk of his head. "It simulates the effects of a red sun environment."

"Like Krypton," Oliver said. Realization hit. "So she's powerless when she's in it."

"Powerless?" Cisco sounded stunned. "Why?"

"Training," Oliver said in harmony with Winn.

"Yeah," Winn said. "How -?"

Oliver gave him a tight grin. "Even if she's never powerless, she needs to know how to fight someone as strong as she is, not rely on the powers alone."

"Right." Winn activated a monitor, and when it came on, it revealed Kara in costume, facing another woman - her sister, Oliver thought briefly - and a man he hadn't seen before. Another agent, probably.

"Good tactics," Oliver observed. "Agent Danvers knows her stuff."

Winn leaned toward Cisco. "He's really like this all the time?"

"He really is," Cisco agreed.

Winn gave a one-shoulder shrug, then nodded toward Oliver's left. "The door's there."

"Sorry?" Oliver asked.

"C'mon," Cisco said. "You know you want some of that."

Oliver scowled at Cisco's choice of words, but couldn't deny that he would enjoy sparring with someone who was nearly his equal - two someones, he amended, watching the male agent's moves - when his life wasn't at stake. Lately, he'd been more teacher than student himself, and while Mr. Terrific, Wild Dog, and the others were learning quickly, he wasn't having much opportunity to improve his own skills.

"Go on," Winn said. "Cisco and I can talk about -"

"Nerd stuff and movies?" Oliver couldn't help grinning.

"Yeah," Winn agreed. "Only next time, bring Felicity, too."

"No," Oliver said. To Winn's and Cisco's protests, he added, "Neither of our worlds would survive once one of you said, _Wouldn't it be cool if …?_ "

Winn and Cisco grinned widely, then Winn pointed. "The door's like an airlock. You can grab weapons in the pocket before you go inside, if you want."

"Have fun storming the castle," Cisco said, and he and Winn fell into geek-speak Oliver might have understood if he'd paid attention, but his focus was instead on the scene on the monitor before him. On the screen, the sparring had stopped momentarily and Alex appeared to be giving the other two instruction.

A few seconds later, when the sparring resumed, Oliver reached for the door.


	7. Chapter 7

So much had changed during the year Kara had been gone - including losing her apartment and her job - but sparring with Alex and Mon-El remained the same. The green room meant that she'd actually be _tired_ when they were done, too. Kara only hoped she'd be tired enough to sleep, which she hadn't really done since she'd gotten back.

Back. Not home. Oh, Kal and Alex and Eliza were here, as well as James, Winn, Hank, and Mon-El, but this Earth didn't feel like home anymore. She shoved that thought, and the feelings associated with it, aside to focus on the bout.

Alex and Mon-El were both good, trained in different styles of combat, and Kara had to be at her best just to keep up with them.

Kara registered the door to the green room opening, but didn't allow herself to be distracted otherwise. It wasn't unusual for Hank or another senior agent to join them, after all.

Alex grinned, and Kara settled into a ready stance - only to be startled by the tug on her cape from behind that sent her stumbling off balance. And the voice - the _voice…._

"Lose the cape if you lose your powers," Oliver said.

"Why?" Kara demanded as she started to regain her balance.

Then she was stumbling again, as Oliver used the leverage of the cape to spin her around so she slammed into the wall. Then he'd caught her from behind and thrown her to the floor. She landed flat on her back, her breath huffing out of her.

His hand touched her throat, gently, a demonstration of the strike he could have made.

"Disabling strike," he told her. "Stay down."

Kara nodded and stayed where she was as Oliver took what had been her place, facing Alex and Mon-El.

Alex was still grinning. "I've heard you're good."

"Good enough," was all Oliver said before the game was on again.

Kara decided _stay down_ didn't mean she had to be lying on the floor, so she shifted to a sitting position, which meant she had an excellent vantage point while she watched Oliver take down first Mon-El, then Alex.

Before Oliver could offer either of them a hand up, Kara leaped to her feet and rushed into Oliver's arms.

He caught her easily, and if he held her tightly enough that the slight tremor in his muscles wasn't noticeable to anyone else, she was more than fine with that.

"What are you doing here?" she asked. "Not that I'm not happy to see you -"

She barely heard Alex saying, "We'll leave you two alone."

It wasn't until the door closed again that Oliver finally pulled away, just enough to smile down at her.

"I came to see you," he said. "And to bring you something I never made the time to give you on my Earth."

"You … brought me a present?" Kara wasn't certain whether she should be pleased or disappointed that was apparently all he'd come for.

"I should've learned my lesson before," Oliver said. "There's never a best time, or a right time. There's just the time we make."

"I don't understand." Kara searched his eyes, hoping to find some clue to his meaning in his improbably soft gaze.

"If I'd made the time," he said, "I would've asked you a question when I gave this to you. I have no right to ask now, but I still want you to have this."

He pulled something from his pocket, and Kara stood back to accept it from him. It was a small velvet box, and her breath caught. _A ring box._

"Oliver, I -"

"Just open it."

She did, and swallowed. Not the diamond she'd expected, but a star ruby set in gold and flanked by two tiny heart-shaped diamonds gleamed in the light.

"Red for Krypton's sun," she breathed.

"And the star for the light you brought into my life."

Something lightened in Kara's chest, as though her insides had taken flight. She smiled and said, "That question - you can ask."

"I have no right," Oliver objected. "Not now, when you're back home where you belong."

"I belong where I'm happiest," Kara said. "A year ago, that would've been here. But in that year, I've changed, and this world has changed, and now… ask, please. Just … ask."

Oliver took a breath and caught her hand in his. "Kara Zor-El Danvers, will you make me the happiest, most fortunate man on two Earths by agreeing to marry me?"

"Yes," Kara said. "It's always yes."

She'd seen him smile many times - more than anyone else had, she thought - but she'd never seen him smile like he smiled now, open and bright, full of joy. She found herself smiling back, and then she was pulling him down into a kiss.

When he finally broke for air, he pulled her tight against him and, her powers weakened in the green room, for the first time she felt his full strength. "I love you, Kara."

"I love you," she replied, and for long moments simply luxuriated in his arms.

Finally, she pulled back. "It's yes, so you should put it on for me."

Wordlessly, Oliver took the ring from the box and slid it over the third finger of her left hand.

Kara chuckled. "I shouldn't be surprised you got the size exactly right."

"Thea did," Oliver corrected. "Her superpower is being able to judge sizes accurately - clothes, shoes, rings."

"I'll be sure to thank her," Kara said, sliding her ringed hand into his.

He lifted it to his lips, then dropped a kiss to her knuckles. "Are you certain, Kara?"

"Absolutely," she replied, meeting his gaze levelly. "The world goes on without us. I came back to no job, no apartment, no _place_. Alex and Maggie are happy together, Guardian and the others are handling the aliens when needed. They don't need me."

"They missed you," Oliver said. "They _will_ miss you."

"And I'll miss them. But I want the life I built on Earth-1, with you. I just thought - well, you didn't seem to want me there."

"No," he said quickly. "Never that. But I know what it's like to think you're never going home, never going to see your family again."

"But I can see them again," she said. "Thanks to Cisco's powers and his interdimensional extrapolator. You're not taking me away from them forever."

He chuckled. "As you once told me, I couldn't make you do anything you didn't want to do, anyway."

"No," she agreed. "But you asked, and I said yes."

"Yes. You did." He still sounded somewhat stunned by the fact, and she squeezed his hand.

"We should tell Alex and the others," she said.

"They're smart," Oliver said. "I'm sure they've figured it out - especially if they've been watching the monitor."

Kara laughed. "Maybe. But we should still tell them."

\- S -

Oliver let Kara lead him out of the green room, and he was only a little taken aback when Alex, Winn, Cisco and the others applauded when they emerged.

"Told you they were watching," Oliver murmured. Kara had no chance to reply before Alex had thrown her arms around her.

Winn and Cisco converged on him, and a bit of uneasiness settled in Oliver's stomach at the thought that these two might be collaborating on something.

"Congratulations," Winn said. "I've got something for you - well, I'm giving it to Cisco, but he'll have it ready for you soon."

"You're gonna like it," Cisco assured him, with a self-satisfied grin.

"I'm almost afraid to ask," Oliver said. _At least Felicity's not here. The three of them together…_

"The blueprints for the green room," Winn said. "We think Cisco can miniaturize the tech to maybe the size of a bedside lamp."

"Please," Cisco said dismissively. "That's the easy part. The hard part is figuring a way to power it without overloading Star City's power grid."

"If anyone can, you can," Winn said. "I wouldn't have believed an interdimensional transport device could be -"

"Oliver."

He let Winn and Cisco fade in his awareness as he turned to face Alex, whose expression was as serious as Kara's but without the lightness in her eyes. Instinctively, he scanned the room for Kara, saw her talking with Henshaw and the man they'd been sparring with. When he focused on Alex again, she was smiling.

"Good," she said. "You're looking out for her."

"Of course," he agreed. Then he shook his head. "I shouldn't be surprised that it's you."

"It's me what?" she asked.

"Giving what my Earth calls a shovel talk."

"Shovel talk?" Her expression turned dubious.

"As in, _I have thirty acres of land and a shovel. If you hurt her, they'll never find your body._ "

"Ah." Alex nodded. "We just call it _The Talk_. Suitably emphasized, of course."

"Of course," Oliver agreed, then let his tone turn serious. "I can't promise I'll never hurt her - none of us knows what the future might bring. I can promise I'll never set out to hurt her, and I'll do everything I can to make her happy."

"That's all anyone can expect," Alex said. "Welcome to the family."

"I'm glad to be part of it," he assured her, and accepted her embrace.

"Take care of my sister," she whispered.

"I will," Oliver promised.

Then Kara was beside him, teasing. "Are you making promises to my sister instead of me?"

"Only to take care of you," Oliver answered, and stepped back so that Alex could hug her sister again.

When they separated, both women's eyes shone with tears. Guilt settled over his shoulders. How could he take Kara away from her family - her entire world?

Her smile when she looked at him answered his question. She wasn't so much leaving her family as joining his, and that was more than he'd ever hoped for. He'd just have to make sure she never regretted her choice.

Oliver held out a hand to Kara. "Ready?"

She took his hand. "Cisco? Let's go home."

# # #

If you're interested, here's the inspiration for Kara's ring:

I'm not sure what else to write in the adventures of Kara and Oliver. (I'm open to suggestions, although I make no promises!) For now, thanks for sharing their story with me. I hope you enjoyed it!


	8. Epilog

The newest story in this series, "Uniting the Worlds" is up. I hope you enjoy it!


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